Europe rallies for 5-3 lead behindMcIlroy, Garcia
Duo earns half point after trailing by two with two holes left.
gleneagles, scotland » For the first time in eight years, Europe is ahead after the first full day of play at the Ryder Cup.
Europe grabbed a 5-3 lead after Friday’s two sessions at Gleneagles — even though big guns RoryMcIlroy, Sergio Garcia and Ian Poulter contributed only half a point.
But it was an improbable half-point that felt like a win, gave the home side a momentum boost and could prove decisive in the final outcome as Europe bids for its eighth victory in 10 Ryder Cups.
”We’ve seen in the Ryder Cups over the years how important momentum switches are and howit can really have a domino effect,” Europe captain Paul McGinley said. “So when the surge came fromAmerica at the end of the session this morning, for our guys to react as well as they did in all four matches, shows real strength of character.”
The last time the Europeans led after the opening daywas at theKClub in Ireland in 2006. They went on to win 18½-9½. The Americans led after the first full day in each of the past three Ryder Cups.
Trailing theUnited States 2½-1½ after the morning fourballs, the Europeans won three of the alternateshot matches in the afternoon. More dramatic was the late rally byMcIlroy and Garcia, who came from two shotsdownwithtwo toplay to halve with Rickie Fowler and JimmyWalker.
McIlroy made a 30-foot birdie putt at the 17th, and Garcia hit a beautiful approach from the rough on the 18th to set up another birdie.
“That was probably as good as awin, to come back from where they were,” McGinley said.
TheNo. 1-rankedMcIlroy and No. 3 Garcia had lost their fourballs match in the morning, beaten 1-up by Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley. Until the late comeback, it looked like McIlroy would become the firstNo. 1 player to lose two Ryder Cup matches on the same day since Tiger Woods in 2002.
“Sergio and I battled for all 36 holes out there today,” McIlroy said. “It was a long day for both of us, and just glad that we were able to contribute something to the cause today.”
He called the half-point a “mini-victory.”
The afternoon began with Lee Westwood and Jamie Donaldson pulling Europe level by beating Jim Furyk and Matt Kuchar 2-up. Westwood, playing in his ninth Ryder Cup, enjoyed his role as mentor to the Welsh rookie.
“I love it, kind of watching somebody take to it like a duck to water,” he said.
In the morning, the Americans seemed to strike a big psychological blowby taking down McIlroy and Poulter.
In a stunning performance, 21-year-old Jordan Spieth and 24-year-old Patrick Reed — the youngest pairing in Ryder Cup history— beat Poulter and Scottish rookie Stephen Gallacher 5 and 4. Spieth and Reed did not play in the afternoon session.